JORGENSEN 61 cm One Hand Clamp/Spreader - 2-pack, Medium Duty, E-Z Hold Bar Clamps Set

Good Quality Profucts

good value / well made

I got a couple of these several years ago but most of my quick clamps have been old school Irwin, which I really like. They get most of the use where a pressure of an f-clamp isn't necessary. The most recent couple of dumbed-down versions that Irwin has produced are a shame...they ruined a perfectly good thing, simultaneously offering less quality and function while saving money in manufacturing and gaining more in profit. I needed some more clamps (who doesn't) and decided to go with these Jorgensens, and ended up getting a dozen of them from various sources. I hadn't been aware that Adj./Pony/Jorgensen had gone under and been purchased by Great Star some years back, but I did notice a little drop in quality in their cast metal clamps recently. I'm glad to say that these EZ Hold quick grips seem to be the same quality inside and out as the earlier ones. I ended up buying a dozen of them from various sources. I hope what seems to be a current lack of availability and jacking up of pricing is just related to supply issues during the covid-19 situation, but I really had to look around to get some sizes at a normal/decent price (lots of small hardware store chains around the country have great pricing and will do online ordering even when they aren't stocked items...not quite an amazon experience but generally no pricing games either). I may buy several more just in case this means that Great Star is changing or discontinuing this line of clamps. Anyway, great clamps, yes the release does take a little adjustment to get used to compared to most traditional styles, but they just work so great and provide great steady, dependable pressure. The cam plates/guts are still nice and beefy and use more of them than what you see in Irwin or DeWalt models. On all of mine thus far, the pads come together nearly parallel with just the very slightest concave bow in the center section (this is good) and I find less shifting/fussing when putting the jam on than with my Irwins which let the top of the pads contact first with a sizeable gap at the bottom. I have heard of the release button for the fixed jaw breaking, but none of mine have yet. The dovetails on my medium and heavy duty clamps are all a little loose, but the skinnier light duty versions have a snug fit (fine either way really). Should you ever want to modify one of these cutting the bar shorter, it's not hard to do so provided you have the means. Rather than a stamped dimple like most are using now for a stop, Jorgensen still uses a good knurled pin (not a roll pin) which can be driven out and reinserted (maybe in a slightly undersized new hole). Well worth the money for these clamps and I do think they have an all around better deal than competing brands/models of quality, and they are light years ahead of the common cheaper many-branded clamp models that you see from Great Neck, Grip, Harbor Freight, Performance, etc, etc, etc. Oh, one last note, the pad covers on these aren't quite the soft grippy vinyl-rubber stuff that I'm used to with the old Irwin...they're a bit firmer closer to plastic, but still very flexible and have just a little grip to them. My older ones haven't shown a lot of wear there and they don't slip off easily...good pad choice imo.

These are huge! Great for all kinds of projects. Strong and well made. Currently have them both temporarily holding a large spotlight to overhead beam.

Great clamps, they really used their heads when they designed these.